The New York Yankees have been heavily linked to Pete Alonso, Juan Soto and Corbin Burnes at the start of free agency in MLB rumors. However, there’s another free-agent target who could be on the team’s radar without significantly raising payroll next season.
New York has plenty of needs it needs to address this offseason, especially on the position player side. Soto is a free agent and a viable threat to leave for a team like the New York Mets or Toronto Blue Jays. Meanwhile, Gleyber Torres is weighing offers on the open market and first baseman Anthony Rizzo wasn’t retained.
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- New York Yankees payroll 2025 (FanGraphs): $238 million
Complicating matters is the fact that New York already has one of the highest projected MLB payrolls in 2025. That’s before potentially signing Soto to a contract worth $650-plus million that would add another one of the highest paid MLB players to the Yankees payroll. If the perennial MVP candidate is brought back, that will force New York to cut costs at other positions of need.
The likeliest position where that could happen is first base. While Alonso would be a monumental addition to the Yankees lineup, he’s seeking a $200 million contract that will keep him on the books into his late 30s. While Gold Glove Award winner Christian Walker is a much more cost-effective option, there’s arguably even more competition for his services. That could push New York to a much cheaper replacement for Rizzo.
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In a Reddit AM on Tuesday, Mark Feinsand highlighted Paul Goldschmidt and Carlos Santana as fallback plans for the Yankees at first base if they can’t land Walker or Alonso.
- Carlos Santana stats (ESPN): .238/.328/.420, .749 OPS, 23 home runs, 71 RBI, 26 doubles
Santana, who turns 39 in April, is a reigning Gold Glove Award winner at first base. In his age-38 season with the Minnesota Twins, he recorded his highest home run total since 2019 while eclipsing a .320 OBP for the first time since 2022. Santana also ranked in the 93rd percentile in Baseball Savant‘s Fielding Run Value while finishing in the 97th percentile for Outs Above Average (14). Over the last two seasons, the switch-hitter has a 10.7 percent walk rate and 16.7 percent strikeout rate with a 107 wRC+.
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- Paul Goldschmidt stats (Baseball Reference): .245/.302/.414, .716 OPS, 22 home runs, 65 RBI, 33 doubles, 98 OPS+
Goldschmidt, age 37, would be a riskier gamble. Prior to the All-Star Break, the former St. Louis Cardinals first baseman posted a .230/.291/.373 slash line with a 114-30 K-BB ratio and a .664 OPS. After the All-Star Break, however, he posted a .271/.319/.480 slash line with a .799 OPS. The right-handed hitter was much worse than Santana defensively, though, ranking in the 47th percentile for Fielding Run Value and the 49th percentile for Outs Above Average (0).
Walker, who can provide both a steady bat for the Yankees lineup and strong defense at first base, is viewed as the team’s best option. If they can’t land him and Alonso lands a bigger contract elsewhere, Santana might be New York’s fallback plan and he’d still be an upgrade over Rizzo.
